India-Sri Lanka Joint Commission to meet next week

Saturday, 19 January 2013 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Minister of External Affairs Prof. G.L. Peiris will visit New Delhi next week to hold the eighth Session of the India-Sri Lanka Joint Commission co-chaired by the Minister with his Indian counterpart Salman Khurshid.

The decision to hold the Joint Commission in New Delhi this month was taken when Minister Peiris met his Khurshid in November 2012 on the sidelines of the Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC).

The two delegations led by the two Ministers will meet on 21 and 22 January to review the status of Indian projects currently undergoing in Sri Lanka, External Affairs Ministry sources said.

The Joint Commission is a structured mechanism that discusses all areas of bilateral relevance for cooperation between India and Sri Lanka including trade, services and investment, development cooperation, science and technology, and culture and education.

Following the end of the conflict in 2009, India has initiated several mega development projects in Sri Lanka, especially in the north and east to rebuild the conflict-affected areas. Among the many development projects India funded, the most notable was the US$ 270 million Indian housing project for displaced Tamils to build 50,000 housing units in the north, east and plantations.

The railway reconstruction project in north, under indian lines of credit, is also progressing currently.

Under the Small Development Project scheme, India has completed a number of projects in diverse areas such as health, education, agriculture, fishing, small and medium enterprises development, community empowerment, art, craft, and culture.